What is the EDF Energy Pretty Curious campaign, and why is it important?

When EDF Energy got in touch about their Pretty Curious campaign, which encourages girls to go into STEM related careers, I was naturally eager to learn more. As a home educating mama, I’m always on the lookout for ways to get the children interested in new and exciting things. It doesn’t get much more exciting than STEM – which stands for science, technology, engineering and maths.

The hard core truth is that STEM related careers have been traditionally dominated by men. Which is why EDF Energy launched the Pretty Curious campaign in 2015, to try and bring some balance into the field. They set themselves a target for 30% of their STEM graduate and apprenticeship intake to be women by 2018, and in 2017 it was already at 35%.

As a large energy company EDF Energy are reliant on STEM skills, and put the utmost importance on recruiting from a diverse talent pool. Pretty Curious will be continuing its mission to encourage girls to pursue STEM based subjects at school, and hopefully go into STEM related careers. They even joined forces in 2017 with Star Wars: The Last Jedi to spread the word to even more girls and women. Take a look at the video below for more details.

Polly, 8 and Clara, 6 were Pretty Curious when they were told they’d get to build a robot which they could then control with an app

To whet our appetite for STEM, EDF Energy sent us a droid inventor kit to create. Being the main home educator, I like to give my husband the fun jobs. Plus he’s a huge Star Wars fan, and was probably as excited as the girls were about building an actual R2D2.

I loved watching the looks of deep concentration on their faces when they were working on this task. To be honest, we don’t have a huge amount of situations where we have to follow instructions to the letter, but it’s great for us to all do from time to time. Myself included. I find it therapeutic to tune out absolutely everything else, and focus my attention fully on one thing.

They all had a great time putting the droid together, and controlling his movements through the app. We’ve done a few of the challenges now, and the kit has been a brilliant addition to our learning schedule.

The campaign has given girls a real sense of what it might be like to work in STEM careers by providing realistic experiences and digital content. You can take part in a number of activities on the Pretty Curious section of the EDF Energy website.

You’ll be asked a series of questions when taking the Future Me Quiz and get to create a shareable, personalised avatar who has a STEM-related career. The idea is for your kids to picture themselves in potential future roles, ranging from a biologist to an electrical engineer. Taking the personality quiz could help them see what careers they might be suited to later on down the road.

You can watch 360º virtual reality videos like Clara is doing here. In the videos you get to experience what life would really be like as the architect of the Shard. Or what it would be like to work on a wind farm. Or you can explore the offices of a software developer. There are plenty to choose from starring everyday amazing women.

Be the first to take the new parents quiz to see what STEM related career would best suit your child(ren). Identify their strengths to discover information and guidance on pursuing roles based on their results.

To learn more head over to the EDF Energy website, or follow #PrettyCurious on social media

Hi, I’m Reneé, Welcome to my blog

I'm a wife and mama of three navigating my way through motherhood, the autism spectrum and home education, whilst trying to remain sane and always authentic. I'm also a real food enthusiast, wannabee chef and published author. Check out my memoir/self-help book Become the Best You. Stay tuned for updates on my current novel Picking up the Pieces.